Sotto, Villanueva seek opening of classes beyond August

Two senators on Tuesday filed separate bills seeking to allow the opening of classes in the country beyond August, considering the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III filed Senate Bill No. 1438 which aims to amend Section 3 of the Republic Act No. 7977 or the Act on Lengthening of School Calendar.

The said provision in the existing law states that the "school year shall start on the first Monday of June but not later than the last day of August."

"This bill, allowing the start of school year to be moved from August to September, or in such other month, as may be determined by the President, would give the Department of Education more time and opportunity to prepare and adopt measures for the 'new normal' of the education system while helping the government fight the COVID-19 outbreak," Sotto said in a statement.

"Since what we have at the moment is a health emergency, there are no other views more important than the ones from the medical experts, particularly on the matter of preventing, fighting and eventually, putting an end to this virus," he added.

Last week, the inter-agency task force leading the COVID-19 response recommended moving the opening of classes to September.

Meanwhile, Senator Joel Villanueva also filed Senate Bill No. 1452 which seeks to authorize the Education Secretary to reschedule the opening of classes in case of a declaration of a state of emergency, state of calamity or similar occurrence.

The Philippines has been placed under a state of calamity last month through President Rodrigo Duterte's Proclamation 929. It will last for six months unless earlier lifted or extended by the President.

"This bill will give the Secretary of Education the flexibility to open the school year 2020-2021 any time after August, especially considering that experts from the UP Resilience Institute have pointed out that the suspension of classes until December or the end of the year would be an effective way to limit further COVID-19 infections," Villanueva said.

Under the proposed measure, the adjustments on the opening of classes may be implemented per area or region too.

Alternative modes of education such as modules, online learning, and radio- or television-based instructions should be in place to ensure continuity of education among the students, Villanueva added.

Last week, the Department of Education said it is working to simplify the curriculum to its most "most essential" lessons for the adjusted schedule of opening of classes for the school year 2020-2021. — RSJ, GMA News